


Glimpses

by masongirl



Series: The morning after [1]
Category: Band of Brothers (TV 2001)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Established Relationship, Fluff, Living Together, M/M, POV Outsider, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-02 16:53:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24430129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/masongirl/pseuds/masongirl
Summary: Dick doesn't gossip, but he watches and sees the little things broad daylight hides from the eyes.
Relationships: Carwood Lipton/Ronald Speirs, Lewis Nixon/Richard Winters, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Series: The morning after [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1747177
Comments: 6
Kudos: 49





	Glimpses

If the weather doesn't sabotage his plans, Dick goes for a run or a swim at the university's sports centre every morning. Exercise refreshes him better than a cup of coffee, and there's something immensely satisfying in the thought of pushing his limits, of staying healthy. He has always been an early riser, and maybe that's part of the reason why he finds mornings beautiful. He likes the solitude he feels roaming the streets and the peace in the air when the city is still asleep, but the new dawn has made its first colourful brush strokes on the dark canvas.

Sometimes, he bumps into his housemates before he leaves. Tab, still in yesterday's clothes looking for a painkiller, Lip and Speirs as they sip steaming tea from their mugs, Peacock in a mad search for yet another thing he lost. And Nix, the only person who could make Dick stay if only he tried. With his dishevelled hair and wry smile, as he drawls his clever, cynic words those rare times when he drags himself out of bed for a lecture. In the first few minutes of their day, people look different, Dick thinks. Purer, not quite keeping themselves behind their masks. You can see a glimpse of their core.

Dick doesn't gossip, but through that short window every morning, he watches and sees the little things daylight hides from the eyes. He knows Nix wants to tell him more than he ever manages, and he catches the disappointment in Tab's expression every time he realises his current girlfriend still isn't the real thing. He notices a lot without ever speaking more than a handful of words himself, so he's almost disappointed it took him a sprained ankle to spot the silent dance going on right under his nose.

Injured leg or not, he has been getting up this week just as early as usual, but with nothing better to do, he lingered in the kitchen. Each day, he limped around, made scrambled eggs and poured himself some orange juice, his comfort drink in the morning. Usually, by the time he was ready to sit down, Speirs has appeared at the table, fully dressed but half asleep. He never grabbed a plate for himself or made any move at all to get breakfast - just sat there, elbows on the table and head propped up on one hand, staring into the distance. They didn't talk, but Dick didn't mind the silence. It felt companionable. Each time, just before he left to go back to his room, he noted that Speirs didn't quite wake up until Lip's heavy steps thudded down the stairs. He figured it meant Speirs wasn't ready to show any weakness in front of the new guy in the house, but he couldn't have been further away from the truth, he realises now, watching the scene that unravels across from him.

Lip made himself an enormous plate of ham and cheese sandwiches, boiled eggs and tomatoes, then sat right next to Speirs and pulled out a dog-eared paperback to read while he ate. Dick was utterly baffled. Lip never appeared as someone prone to indulge in excess, unlike Nix. 

But it's so obvious now - it's because Speirs filches his own breakfast from Lip's plate. Whenever Lip turns a page or leans back in his chair, Speirs' hand darts out and grabs another piece of food for himself. Once, he looks Dick directly in the eye after, as if daring him to speak, but Dick just raises an eyebrow and turns his attention back to his own eggs. It's not his business, although Lip is too nice, in his opinion. He wouldn't let anyone but maybe Lew do that, but Lew is… he's special. 

The surprises don't end there though. Dick spends a minute checking his emails on his phone, and the next time he looks up, he finds Speirs biting down on a tomato wedge, carefully skirting around the green part that remained where the stem used to be. Then, nonchalant as ever, he places the leftover, disgusting little piece back on Lip's plate. Dick can't help it, the disapproval washes over his face. Never one to miss an opportunity for a staredown, Speirs' challenging eyes lock on his. Without glancing away, Speirs takes the tomato wedge he holds in his other hand and commits a similar massacre to it. Again, he leaves the stem scar next to Lip's food. 

The staring match is broken by Lip's long-suffering sigh. Dick's gaze jumps to Lip's face and he catches a look he has never seen before, something exasperated and too fond. Almost… intimate. It's directed at Speirs, who blinks, casts his eyes down like it's an involuntary reflex, then quickly raises them again. He hooks two fingers into the sleeve of Lip's soft blue bathrobe. The touch draws one of those small, half-suppressed smiles to Lip's mouth. 

He picks his knife up and cuts all the green stem scars out of the intact wedges.

 _Unbelievable,_ Dick's inner voice repeats over and over as he stands and goes to the sink to wash his dishes. Does this really mean what he thinks it does? This is the first time he has seen Speirs touch another person just because he wanted to, without social pressure or aggressive intent. The first time he has ever appeared even slightly remorseful for something he did. Dick doesn't claim to have a vast amount of experience to base this on, but it's the only explanation that makes sense to him. 

His borderline kleptomaniac friend got his heart stolen.

 _Nix would be so shocked if he knew,_ Dick smiles and reaches for a kitchen towel to dry his plate. How long will it take until he, too, picks up on Speirs' clues? What will he think about it? Somewhere deep in his heart, Dick hopes that seeing someone so stiff and reserved as Speirs find happiness could be a sign for them as well. He isn't sure how to go about it, but he wants Nix to give him a chance when he gathers the courage to ask. Perhaps, there's hope for them too.

Behind him, he hears a quiet whisper. "Your robe is really soft."

He can't hear what Lip says in response, but from the corner of his eye, he catches a glimpse of a kiss. He pretends he didn't notice. He respects the secrets unveiled by the morning light.

_~End~_  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Tell me what you think :)


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